


Mistletoe

by TheNerveToServe



Category: The Magnificent Seven (TV)
Genre: Christmas fic, F/M, Just goofing off in the name of holiday fun, No real ships here, holiday fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-10
Updated: 2019-12-10
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:27:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21748294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheNerveToServe/pseuds/TheNerveToServe
Summary: Buck has hatched a new plan to get Inez's attention. Unfortunately for him, he confided his plans to JD.
Relationships: Inez Recillos/Buck Wilmington, Inez Recillos/Vin Tanner
Kudos: 9





	Mistletoe

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note: This snippet has been hanging around on my computer for over a year now. I finally decided it was time to clean it up just in time for the holidays. Per usual, I own nothing—that credit goes to MGM Studios and several other companies. Enjoy!

JD could not fight the grin tugging on the corners of his mouth. Luckily, he was usually in high spirts so the expression was not suspicious in and of itself. Buck thought he was being sneaky, putting that mistletoe over the door into Inez’s kitchen. No one else should be down there except for Inez and Buck had already secured the table nearest the stairwell. Buck’s plan was simple—jump up and try to claim the traditions dictated by the plant’s presence as soon as the woman came through the opening. 

Someday JD was sure Buck would learn to stop confiding his Inez-related plans to his young friend—the pattern of failure when JD was in the loop would become too obvious to ignore. JD could not help snitching to Inez though—the woman had a wicked sense of humor and shared JD’s appetite for pranks. Buck was also an easy target so JD often gave into the temptation to thwart the older man’s efforts at wooing the attractive saloonkeeper.

Hopefully Vin would not kill the lot of them in the aftermath. Well…Inez was probably safe but JD could not vouch for his own well-being. If Buck ever learned that he had tipped Inez off about the mistletoe, odds were good that he and Vin would gang up on him. JD might not have been too good with statistics yet but even he could calculate the possibility of that outcome with almost no effort. 

“This is a sacred Christmas tradition, JD. Inez can’t argue against that logic I reckon! She takes Christmas mighty seriously.” Buck shifted in his seat, eyes locked on the doorway as he waited impatiently. 

Ezra rolled his eyes in the direction of the hanging spring of plant matter. “Isn’t it a bit early for decoratin’, Buck? Mrs. Travis’s Christmas gala is not until next week—I for one intend to hold off on lavishly coating the buildings in greenery until closer to the appointed date. Besides, that isn’t even real mistletoe—at least not the kind as used in traditional decorations. As such, Inez is legally absolved from having to honor any traditions regarding it.” 

Ignoring Ezra’s commentary and Buck’s squawk of protest, JD leaned toward Buck. “What if Inez doesn’t know about mistletoe, though?” He feigned ignorance, “Do they even do that down in Mexico? I think it’s more of an…English tradition isn’t it? 

“Well then let’s consider this an introduction to American-styled Christmases…uhh…from England.” Buck grinned as he took another sip of his beer, proud that he had countered JD’s argument so handily. 

His attempts at patience were rewarded a moment later when Inez pushed back the tattered green curtain that separated her kitchen from the main saloon. Stepping through, she paused when Buck jumped to his feet and came to stand in front of her. Raising an eyebrow, she glanced up quickly before gesturing at the sprig over her head, “Mistletoe, right?” When Buck nodded, she continued, “If my gathered information is accurate, according to you Americanos I must now kiss the gentleman who is standing under it with me. Is that correct?” 

JD’s eyes shifted expectantly from the couple toward the curtain behind Inez and the sound of boots on the stairs. Ezra followed his glance and tilted his head to listen before shooting a slightly perplexed look in JD’s direction. Very faintly, only enough for the gambler to see, JD inclined his head toward the couple and then quickly mouthed, “Vin”. As soon as he made out the name, the perplexity in Ezra’s eyes transformed into a wicked gleam of amusement, like a cat spotting a mouse too far from its hole.

“You got that right.” Buck grinned, misreading the smile on Inez’s face. Before he could do more than confirm Inez’s information, a calloused hand pushed the curtain aside. “What’d you say you needed help with Miss In—mpphs!”

Inez spun around and grabbed Vin by the collar of his coat, pulling him in and planting her mouth firmly over his. The tracker’s flew open in surprise as Buck started sputtering out a feeble protest.

Leaning his chair back onto its back legs, Ezra smirked as JD started laughing. “Protesting is quite worthless, Buck. Unfortunately for your romantic aspirations, Mr. Tanner is closer to the plant matter then you are. If Señorita Recillos chooses to ignore the fact that she’s not legally obligated to do anything in this situation, he is the appropriate choice.”

Breaking the kiss off, Inez reached up to snag the twig from her doorway and tucked it into Vin’s hatband. Then she winked at both men. “It’s a good tradition I think!” 

The tracker just stared at her wide-eyed, his face growing redder as the blush crawled up his cheeks. 

Buck glared at Ezra and JD as the pair succumbed to their mirth, and the rest of the patrons started looking around for the source of their amusement. It only took a minute for his own good humor to win out over his annoyance and he started laughing too. “I guess I should have timed that one better! I’ll catch you under the mistletoe next time Inez!” Tipping his hat, he went back to claim his beer and left the path clear for Inez to walk behind her bar.

Vin’s eyes shifted between the four for the full minute, rapidly trying to figure out what had just happened. Giving up on gaining understanding, he awkwardly tipped his hat to Inez, “Ma’am…” He mumbled the honorific, only managing the one word before the blush turned his ears tomato-red and his words piled up in his throat. 

Turning, he bolted for the saloon doors, nearly running Chris over as the other gunslinger came through. Jumping back, Chris stared after the tracker, shifted his eyes toward the table were Ezra, Buck and JD were still laughing, and then pushed the saloon door back open. Looking out, he saw Vin heading straight for the alley that held his wagon. The man vanished around the corner and Chris stepped away from the door, looked toward the occupied table and quickly gestured toward the street before spreading his hands. 

Chris’s demand for an explanation was clear. Shaking her head, Inez gestured for the gunslinger to join her at the bar. Between the guffaws, good-natured shoves, and pantomimes of various parts of the scene, the other three would not be fit to explain anything for a while yet.

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note 2: 1) There are hundreds of variety of mistletoe that grow all over the world. As the Victorian concept of “kissing under the mistletoe” as became more prominent in England, English varieties of mistletoe are most often associated with the tradition. However, in Arizona, it is more likely that Buck would be using Desert Mistletoe, several varieties of which are native to the region. Ezra just lives to find loopholes in everything—it’s his hobby. 
> 
> 2) While some saloons did use the swinging doors in summer (as seen on the show) these would be replaced with solid doors in the winter to keep the cold and bad weather out.


End file.
